Machine for reversing small articles



B. N. GRIFFING. I MACHINE FOR BEVERSING SMALL ARTICLES.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 30, I920. '4 1L 885 O Patented July 119, 19210 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

B. N. GRIFFING. MACHINE FOR REVERSING SMALL ARTICLES- I APPLICATION FILED JUNE30 1920. lfifififlQfi Patented July 19, 1921.,

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BRUCE IN. GREFIE'DTG, 0F SHELTON, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR 'J'EU THE GRIFFIN BUTTON COMPANY, 015 SHELTON, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF GON- NE'GTICUT.

MACHENE 'EQR REVERSING SMALL ARTICLES.

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To all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that l, BRUCE N. GRIFFING, a citizen of the United States, residin at Shelton, county of Fairfield, State of onnecticut, have invented an Improvement in Machines for Reversing Small Articles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a machine for reversing small articles, such as disks and the like, so as to successively present both sides of the articlesto view in order that they may be inspected and separated into grades or lots, and the invention has for its object to provide simple mechanical means for assembling the articles, for transporting them to a location Where one side of each is visible, and for reversing the position of the articles and transporting them to a difierent location where the opposite side of each can be inspected. Heretofore, the work of assembling small articles of the present character to make ready for the necessar inspection has been manually performed. his has been a tedious and laborious operation for the reason that each article has had to be separately handled, and has produced unsatisfactory results because the assembling process has necessarily lacked system. The machine of the invention is continuous in its operation and requires no manual labor whatever in the erformance of its functions, leaving nothing to distract the attention of the employee from the Work of inspection, the articles to be inspected being mechanically handled and removed from the machine.

With the abor e and other objects in view, the invention comprises the construction, arrangement and operation of parts as now to be fully described and hereinafter specifically claimed. 1

In the accompanying drawing forming a part of this specification,

Fi ure 1 is a vertical, longitudinal sectionai view of the entire machine;

Fig. 2 an end elevation as seen from the right in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a top plan view; I

Fig. a detail sectional view of a portion of-the conveyor wheel. and hopper; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on line 5-5 in Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows. 4

The frame of the machine consists of side members 10 and end members 11 which are supported by legs 12 located at opposite Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed June 30}, 1920. Serial 1t'o. 393,t 17.

Patented July in, rear...

in any convenient manner, as by bolts 15, and brackets 16, which are also arranged opposite each other and are located between the uprights and supporting arms.

A conveyer wheel 17 journaled in the brackets as indicated at 18 and. provided with depressions 19 which are each about the size of the articles to be inspected is adapted to carry the articles from a hopper 20, the articles being delivered to the hopper through a chute 21. The conveyer wheel is adapted to be rotated in the direction of the arrow in Figs. 1 and 4:. As shown very clearly in Figs. 4: and 5, the lower edge of the hopper is provided with flaps 22 which are adapted to allow the articles which are in the depressions to be removed, but to retain the remainder of the articles in the hopper.

A pair of drums, denoted by 23, which are adapted to freely rotate, are journaled in the opposite ends of the side members of the frame, and a drum 24, which is also adapted to freely rotate, is ournaled in the supporting arms. A. conveyor belt 25 is spun around the pair of drums, denoted by 28, and drum 24, and one of said pair of drums, the one at the left in Figs. 1 and 3, is supported by sliding bearing blocks 26 which are adjustable longitudinally of the side members by means of bolts 27 provided with wing nuts 28, in order that conveyer belt 25 may be properly tensioned. A pair of drums, denoted by 29 and 80, respectively, which are also adapmd to freely rotate, are journaled in the uprights, drum 29 being located closely adjacent the side members of the frame and drum 30 being located near the upper end of the uprights and closely adjacent the upper portion of the conveyor wheel as very clearly disclosed in Fig. 1. The supporting arms also carry a drum 31 which is preferably located between one of drums 23 and drum 24C in about the position shown in Fig. 1, and is adapted to have transmitted to it the power by which the mechanism of the invention is operated. A second conveyer belt 32 is spun around drums 29, 30 and 31 and is adapted to engage a portion of the conveyor wheel. Drum 30 is sup-ported by sliding bearing blocks 33 which are adjustable longitudinally of the uprights by means of bolts 34: provided with wing nuts 35, in order that conveyor belt 32 may be properly tensioned.

Drum 31 may be caused to rotate in any convenient manner. As shown, it preferably provide a pair of conical pulleys 36, which are iournaled in the supporting arms, for this purpose. A power transmission belt 37 is spun around the conical pulleys, and one of said pulleys is provided with a shaft 38 which rigidly carries a power receiving pulley 39, while the other of said pulleys is provided with a shaft 40 which rigidly car.- ries a pulley all. The shaft, denoted by 42, of drum 31 rigidly carries a pulley l3, and a second power transmission belt ll is spun around pulleys 41 and 43.

The two conveyor belts are preferably about the width of the conveyor wheel. its

before mentioned, conveyor belt 32 is spun around drums 29, 30 and 31 and a portion of said belt rests against the conveyor wheel. he clearly disclosed in Fig. l, conveyor belt 25, which is spunaround the pair of drums carried by the frame and drum 2%, is so ar ranged that it bears against the portion or conveyor belt 32 which is contiguous with drum 3i. W hen now drum 3l is rotated in a clockwise direction conveyer belt 32 will be caused to move in the direction of the arrows in Fig. l, to rotate the conveyer wheel, and conveyor belt 25, by reason of its on gagement with conveyor belt 32, will be frictionally driven so that it will move in the direction oi the said arrows, the pair of drums and drum 2% being caused to rotate in their hearings.

The small articles to be inspected are dropped into the hopper through chute 21, and rest against the periphery of the conveyer wheel. As the conveyor wheel rotates, those articles which locate themselves in the depressions move forward with said wheel. Conveyor belt 32 is so located and arranged with respect to the conveyor wheel that the articles are held in the depressions until they reach the lower portion of the wheel. They (one side of each is presented to the view or are here deposited upon a horizontal ortion oflconveyer belt 32 as denoted by in Fig. l, and are moved by said belt across the .space' designated 3 in Figs. 1 and 3 where eniployeeswho 'rnay'he located upon 0 poslte sides of. the frame, as indicated at g U.

y They arenext carried by conveyor belt 32 around drum 31 and made to pass between the conveyor belts, as indicated at l) in Fig.

,1, the articles being here turned over and deposited upon a horizontal portion of con- .veyer belt, 25,. as indicated "at E in Fig.

1'. They are finally carried by conveyor,

It is to be understood that the positions of the elements of the machine of the invention may be reversed and that various changes in details of construction may be made without departing -l'rom the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims. For example, the mechanism may be set up so that the drum which receives and transmits the power to rotate the conveyor wheel and to drive the conveyor belts is adapted to ro ,tate in a counter-clockwise direction, and

any convenient means may be employed for initially depositing the articles upon one oi": the; conveyer belts.

ll claim is:

1. A machine of the character described comprising a conveyor wheel, a pair oi artirlaving fully described my invention, what cle carrying conveyor belts, said belts being disposed in frictional engagement, one of sald belts being disposed in frictional engagement with said wheel, and means for driving the conveyer belts and for causing the conveyor wheel to be rotated, whereby articles are transferred from one or said belts to the other of said belts reversing the position of each article on the bolts.

2. A machine oil the, character described comprising a conveyor wheel which is adapted to receive small articles, a conveyor belt in frictional engagement therewith for transferring articles from the conveyor wheel to the conveyor belt; a second conveyor belt in frictional engagement with said first mentioned conveyor belt for transferring articles to said second mentioned conveyor belt and disposed relative thereto for giving the articles a half turn, and means for driving the conveyor belts and for rotating the conveyer wheel, whereby both sides of the articles may be successively presented to view.

3. A machine or the character described comprising a conveyor wheel provided with spaced depressions adaptedwto receive small articles, a conveyor belt in I frictional engagement therewith for transferring articles from the depressions in the conveyor wheel to the conveyor-belt, a secondconveyer belt disposed in frictional engagement with'the 'first named-belt for transferring articles from said first mentioned conveyor belt to sa d second mentioned conveyer belt and for giving the articles a half-turn, and means neeaooo for driving the conveyer belts and for rotat ing the conveyer wheel.

4. In a machine of the character described, a conveyer wheel adapted to convey small articles, a conveyer belt disposed in frictional engagement therewith for conveying articles therefrom in one position, a second conveyer belt disposed in frictional engagement with the first named belt for conveying articles therefrom in a reverse position, said belts and wheel being arranged whereby articles conveyed serve to increase the frictional engagement of said belts and wheel.

5. A. machine of the character described, comprising a frame, uprights and supporting arms carried thereby, drums journaled in said uprights and arms, a conveyer belt carried by said drums and adapted to transport articles in one position, drums journaled in said frame and arms, a conveyer belt carried by said last named drums and associated with the first named belt whereby to receive articles therefrom and"trans. port same in a reverse position, and means for driving said belts.

6. A machine of the character described, comprising a, frame, uprights and supporting arms carried thereby, drums journaled in said uprights and arms, a conveyer belt spaced relation, a conveyer belt disposed in the frame in frictional engagement with a portion of said wheel whereby to receive and transport articles therefrom in one position, a second conveyer belt disposed in the frame in frictional engagement with the first named belt, said second belt being positioned relative to the first named belt whereby to receive wheel, supporting arms on one end of said 1 frame, a drum, journaled in said uprights above the wheel, a drum journaled in said uprights below the wheel and above the frame, a drum journaled in said supporting arms above the frame, a conveyer belt carried by said drums and in frictional engagement with a portion of said wheel to receive and'transport articles therefrom in one position, a pair of drums journaled one in each end of the frame, a drum journaled in the supporting arms above said frame and above the first named drum in said arms, a conveyer belt carried by the last named series of drums and in frictional engagement with the first named belt whereby to receive and transport articles therefrom in a reverse position, and power transmission means connected to one of said drums for driving said belts and wheel.

In testimony whereof I afix my signature.

nation it. enrrrme. 

